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CU-BOULDER CAMPUS CLIMATE SURVEY: FALL 2001

General Findings

Overall students rate the campus climate quite favorably. Nearly all students (85%) say they are satisfied or very satisfied with UCB. Students feel comfortable interacting with faculty and expressing their views in class. Derogatory remarks targeted at various groups (e.g., women, minorities) are generally rare. When such remarks are heard, a majority of the students say they are quite willing to challenge them.

Students are significantly more positive about the climate inside than outside of the classroom. Students report experiencing more sexism, disrespect, racism, homophobia, and less civility outside of the classroom. They perceive diversity as being more valued inside of the classroom.

Faculty receive high marks. While there will always be cases of individual faculty members, either willfully or in ignorance, making insensitive remarks targeted at groups, generally, students report high levels of sensitivity from faculty related to diversity issues. Students see the classroom as civil and welcoming; outside the classroom is rated less well. Students more often report hearing other students rather than faculty make disparaging remarks. Faculty are rated highly in their support for diversity.

While their overall satisfaction is fairly high, African American students rate the campus and the Boulder community less favorably than do students from other racial/ethnic groups. African American students feel that diversity is not highly valued, especially by the Boulder Community at large. They are generally more uncomfortable in various social settings and report more negative experiences outside the classroom and in the larger Boulder area. These results mirror those found on past community surveys conducted by our office.

Foreign students are quite positive about the climate, and in fact, are more positive than any of the racial/ethnic groups. They feel welcome, comfortable, and integrated into campus life. Foreign students report hearing few disparaging remarks from students and faculty, and feel that diversity is valued both by UCB and the community at large. As one would expect, foreign students have significantly more contact with non-native English speakers than do other students.

The gay and lesbian community is not as positive as other students about the CU-Boulder climate. A substantial number say they "often" or "very often" feel different; many report feeling disconnected from other students. They also report hearing many more disparaging remarks about various groups and say they are very likely to challenge such remarks when heard.

Students belong to many groups; which one is considered most important to how they are treated on campus varies considerably beyond such factors as gender and race/ethnicity. For many students, major discipline, class level, athletic or Greek status, age, or religious affiliation are seen as most central to how they are treated on campus. Experiences with stereotyping and ratings of the campus and community climate vary by group membership.

Campus Climate Survey 2001 Table of Contents

l:\ir\survey\climate\climate01\report\overview_results.doc last updated 6/28/02

Last revision 07/23/02